Improvement in harvesters



2 Sheets8heet 1.

I. H. OONKLIN.

HARVESTER,

Patented Maw 25. 1858.

No. 20,334. v

2 Sheets-Sheet; 2. I. H. GONKLIN.

HARVESTER.

No. 20.334. Patented May 25, 1858 m; Nonms PETRRS co. PHoTauma, WASHINGTON, n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

I-. H. OONKLIN, OF ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS.

IMPBOVEMENTIN HARVESTERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 20,334, dated May 25, 1858.

ful Improvements in HarvestingMachines;

and I'do hereby'declare that the following is a iull and exact description thereof, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

The nature of my invention consists incertain improvements in the cutting apparatus and attachmentsthereof, as hereinafter fully described.

To enable those skilled in the art to make. and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operatiomreferring' by letters to the accompanying drawings, 'for,m-' ing partof this specification, in which-' Figure 1 represents a perspective view of a harvester, with the omission of the driving apparatus and grain'platform, embracing my improvements, Fig. 2, a top view of the cutting apparatus and vibrating divider; Fig. 3, a partial back edge view of the cutting ar ran gement and vibrating divider; Fig. 4, skeleton views, showing the peculiar motions or operation of the vibrating divider; and Fig. 5, a top view of the cutting apparatus with the holderplate D removed. I

Similar letters denote the same parts indifferent views.

A represents a segmental finger-bar, upon which thefingers are arranged, and which is supported by a horizontal shaft, a, having its bearings in the forward ends of the sides of the frame B. Said frame is constructed. of three pieces, as seen at B B B, Fig. 1, which are firmlysecured together by fourbolts,r '1' r r.

c c, &c., are thefingers, projecting from the front edge of the barA; E E, 850., the cutters, and e, the cutter-bar, which is held down upon the upper side of the finger-bar A by means of a plate, D, secured by bolts'b b. The cutter-bar e, although held down upon the fingerba'r, is allowed to move upon said finger-bar in the arc of a circle concentric with the cirjcles in which the fingers and cutters lie, and to such extent in either direction as is equal jas will be hereinafter fully described.

G is the vibrating divider, which is constructed of the form substantially as shown in the drawings. Said divider has a. long narrow shank n, through which, at its junction with the butt of thev divider, is made a hole to 'accommodatethe pin 11, bywhichpin said divider is pivoted in'the'frontend of the shield G, the shank 'n passinginto the hollowside frame, B, and through a slot cut iu the end of the cutter-bar e, by which cutter-bar the di vider is vibrated upon its pivot 12 in ahori'zontal plane.

Sis ayibratiugarm operated by any desirabledriving mechanism-which works. at its button a pivot, r, in the frame B, and the forward end of which passes-through a slot'in the end of the cutter-bar opposite, and similar to that through which the shank not thedivider G passes. V i

c c are two slots in the cutter-bar e, of sufficient width to accommodate the two pins 0. a, which project upward from the finger-bar A to a height equal to the thicknessof the cutterbar a. Said slots are formed in a curve con centric with that passing through the cutters and of sufficient length to allow the cutter-bar e to vibrate the desired length of stroke, the pins a a being of such diameter as to fill the width of the slots, prevent any lateral play to the bar e, while the plate I), when properly secured by its screws 1) b, prevents any up and down play to said bar.

.It will be observed that at each end of the cutter-bar e its.rear edge is bent npand somewhat-around, so as to lie nearly in the'surface' of a cylinder, this bent-up portion being ta pered down toward th'atpart where thecutters commence. This peculiar formation ofsaid.

bare, which is readily comprehended byfreference to the drawings, enables me to acco nplish two very desirable results, viz.: a direct attachment of the vibratingdriving-lever or arm 8 to the vibrating cutter-bar 0 without the use of any joints or other mechanism, the said arm sproducing legitimately in the said cutter-bar e the desired motion, whilethe said bar 0 and arm smove in curves eccentric to each other; also thedirect attachment 'of the cutter'bar e to the shank n of thevibrating divider, whereby said divider is actuated in the desired manner by said cutter-bar without any complication of mechanism, and while the circumferences of the circle, intwhich saiddividcr and bar move intersect each other. It will be seen that these desirable results are dependent upon theshape of the ends of the cutter-bar, as described, being bent up, as shown, and slotted to receive theends of the lever s and shank n, which slide longitudinally throu'ghsaid slots while they vibrate in I the arcs of circles.

It will be observed that the ends of the plate D, near the front edge, are upset or shelled out to allow a portion of the turned-up part of the bar 0 to pass under. This is onlyecessary on account of the advantage to the bar e of an extension of its turned-up edge giving rigidity to its ends, which have some strain to bear consequent to the variable direction's of its motion and that of the drivinglever s. I

The shaft a, it will be seen, is semicircular in its cross-section,with the exception. of its. extreme ends, which must be perfectly cylin-- drical to'form journals fitting into suitable hearings in the sides of the frame CB, and in which said shaft is oscillated at pleasure by means of a lever, m, fitted. to the projecting and squared endn' ofsaid shaft. 5 The form of' braced by rods k k and pivoted at'their angles.

to the outer sides of the endframes, B, bylbolts d. Said bearers. or arms are furnished at their vrear ends with handles fjf and .ears g g, in

which latter are cut slots to accommodate the ratchet-arcs and keys h handi z. By this-arrangement the reel is adjusted to any desired height by raising or loweringthe rearends; of arms F- F, by means of handles ff, which are secured in. position on the ratchet-arcs h h by the keys 41 v3.

The frame of the'machinegfl form of only' three pieces or hollow sections bolted together by four bolts, as before mentioned. By this arrangement it will be observed that the-body j of the machine is veryeconomically and durably formed, and made to possess many advantages over the ordinary construction of frame; but as my invention does not relate-to the frame-work of the machine IWlll refrain from further description of it here.

i is the reel-shaft, and H H, &c.,its heaters,

'which latter are curved in planes passing through the shat'tjand soas to approach said shaft near their centers. The ends of said shaft I are formed into suitable jourhals, 1, which have. their hearings in the forward ends of the arms-F.

It willbe noticed that since the bent-up and slotted en'ds'jot'the cutter-bar 6 lie nearly in the center of the shaft a, their position is-not much changed by the oscillation of said shaft, though they are somewhat changed. This change does not, however, in the least affect the perfect working of the driving-lever sordivider-shank n, since the ends of both the lever s and shank n and bent-up portion other e are quite t'hiii and the'slots in said bar are made sufficiently wide to allow such changeintherelative positions of the several parts without causing any hinderance to their perfect working. Hence the shaft a may beoscillated and the cutting apparatus thus elevated and depressed while the same vis in full and perfect operation in every other respect.

The divider G is so constructed as that when operated in a manner as hereinafter described it will gather the grain beyond the reach of the cutters and outside the line through which 'the'projecting. parts of the machine pass into said cutters, said divider having a double curvature and elastic point, and being vibrated rapidly and consequently capable of brin'gin g in every stalk within its reach as it moves inward or toward the cutters, while it slightly presses out and springs past the stalks as it movesoutward, bringing in the same stalks at I 7 its next inward stroke tot-he cutters.

Having described fully the construction'of' the different parts of my improvement,- the operation will be readily'understood from .the following explanationfviz"; The-machine bein g carried forward by the required power,'the lever s is. vibrated by any suitable driving mechanism atthe properspeed, by which the cutter-bar e, carryin g the cuttersE E, is caused to vibrate curvilinearly, whereby a curved cut is -made-in the standing grain as the machine progresses in like manner as produced by other and well-known machines havin g'a curved plat form and cutter. The reel, constructed as be; fore described, being'cansed torevolve at the 'same time on itsaxis, brin'gs'thegrain against the-.cuttersandthrows it when cut'on the platform or grain-apron, which should occupy the space marked A ,.FigI 1, from whence it may be removed by hand-rakes or,a'n automatic raking attachment. The reel is elevated or lowered, according-"to circumstances, at the pleasure of theoperato'r by means of theha'n- -dles f f, and issecured in position as before described. The finger-bar A, by means of its oscillatin g shaft a, is elevated or depressed at the will of the operator by thewhandle m. As the machine progresses, making a. curved cut-in 'thegrain from onenextre'mityto the other of the cutting apparatus, in order that the swathmay be of s'utticientwidth or that the grain may be cut sufliciently far from the end of the machine that no portion left standing shall be pressed. down or injured by the parts of the machine fol-lowing after the cutters, Lgiveto thedivider, which has heretofore been made stationary, a vibratory motion, by which inotion and the peculiar form and co'nstruction of any grain or form a zigzag edge to the cut,

but is enough to accomplish, by aid of its quick motion, peculiar form, and elastic point, the

desired result of gathering in a veryv narrow strip of standing grain to the cutters, so that themachine,followingafter,willperfectlyclear the standing grain. From the peculiar form and motions of this vibrating divider, it will be seen (by reference to Fig. 4, where the motions of said divider areindicated by different colored lines) that it springs past the stalksin its backward motion, or when going from the cutters, while it grasps them coming forward, or toward the cutters; and it will be observed-that there is little motion to the rear end or butt of the divider, the point 0 acting for the most part to gather in the grain, which, as'gathered within the grasp of said point, passes down the in clined edge of the divider from o to 0 (see Fig; 4) to} the cutters as the machine passes for- Wfi! c Having fully described the construction and.

2. The curved or turned-up and slotted ends of the finger-bar e, as set forth, in combination witha vibrating lever, s, as and for the purpose hereinbefore specified.

I; H. CONKLIN.

Witnesses BENJAMIN Hem, J AS. E.- DENN1S. 

